New Jeeper

Hi guys,

I'm new to the Cherokee forums. I recently bought a 2001 XJ and am trying to figure out what I should do first. My family currently has 5 jeeps, with mine being the only XJ. My older brother has a ZJ and is big into forums and has become quite the gearhead. My question is where to begin? I am on a college student budget so money is definitely a constraint. I would like to put a little lift on it to make it look more like a jeep and less like a mall crawler. Any suggestions as to where to begin? Thanks,

Kyle

Yes, begin with the maintenance items.

Flush the radiator and change all of the fluids--ALL of them.
Inspect the serpentine belt.

Take if for some light wheeling with friends--figure out what it is you would like it to do that it can't quite do as is.

When you are ready to do the lift you need to consider the maximum (for now, at least) size tires you want, that will effect the lift/trim decisions, as well as any needed gearing changes.

When you start lifting, changing tires, and gearing none of that will be very cheap. Search in Mod Tech and there are plenty of salvage yard alternatives to buying new.

Welcome to , and good luck.

I am still new to wheeling XJ's 2 1/2 years. I love the 3in lift with 30's - 31's. You don't need to regear or change the steering or even do a SYE. The lift is cheap and tires are all over Craigslist since people always want to go bigger. I have wheeled the heck out of my XJ with this set-up and have a blast. I do want to go bigger in the future but I am taking baby steps and slowly building since it can get expensive and overwhelming fast to go big quick.

Good luck.

Begin by sitting back here and learning about your rig!